Silo, the new science-fiction show on Apple TV, has a gripping premise that centers around an underground civilization in a post-apocalyptic world. The series introduces its protagonist only at the end of the first episode, relying on the strength of its premise to hook the viewers. The show is based on a self-published book series by Hugh Howey.
Set in a 144-storey tower, the show follows the lives of around 10,000 people who live in a silo that was created after humanity was shunted underground due to the uninhabitable surface world. There is no access to books, films, or any old data, either digital or analog, and the inhabitants have no knowledge of what happened in the past. The silo is its own ecosystem, with the working class occupying the bottom floors and the judiciary, law enforcement, and the mayor occupying the top floors.
The show raises questions about authority and the human tendency to defer to it, as well as the socioeconomic privileges that allow certain people to challenge those in power. The plot is set into motion when a man discovers a ‘relic’ from the past – a hard drive with blueprints of the silo – and sets into motion a twisty plot that combines elements of police procedural, upstairs-downstairs drama, and social commentary.
Although Silo is ostensibly a science-fiction show, the tech on display is not particularly futuristic. There is no internet, and there are no lifts; instead, the inhabitants spend hours on endless flights of stairs. The silo serves as its own ecosystem, and there is little interaction between the classes.
Silo raises interesting questions about authority and socio-economic privilege, but the lived-in world of the show is not as minutely fleshed-out as one would imagine. The show treads similar thematic ground as Apple’s Severance but in a more conventional sci-fi set-up. In the age of streaming, Silo is a reminder of solid episodic television.
